As the woman I loved relaxed more and more against my hand, I increased the pressure on her neck, massaging it until I was practically holding her head in my palm. Etta fell asleep less than half an hour into the movie, but Morgan and I didn’t move from our places on the couch. We just sat there, staring blankly at the TV screen, while the puppy and the baby slept peacefully between us.
“I can’t believe you talked me into coming here,” she said after a while, her voice low. “I have a million things I should be doing in Sacramento.”
“You regretting it already?” I asked, rolling my head to the side to look at her.
“Actually, no,” she replied, her lips tipping up at the corners. “I’m really glad we’re here.”
“Me too,” I said, giving the back of her neck a gentle squeeze. “You think you’ll stay awhile?”
“At least long enough for your mom to visit Etta,” she said, half joking.
The reminder had me holding back a grimace. My mom still hadn’t made contact, and Morgan had no idea how bad it actually was. I’d mentioned the argument to her when I’d first shown up at her house, but we hadn’t discussed it since. I was dreading Morgan’s reaction once she knew that my mom wasn’t speaking to me because of our relationship. She didn’t need an extra reason to push me away; she’d been doing that just fine on her own.
“If you stay longer than that, I’ll make you coffee in the morning,” I promised, running my fingers through her hair.
“Breakfast, too?”
“And lunch,” I agreed. “Dinner, even.”
“That’s hard to pass up.”
“Then don’t.” Her face was illuminated blue and green from the light of the TV and I couldn’t help but run my thumb over the curve of her cheek. She was so beautiful, even when she was rolling her eyes at me.
“I should probably get her in bed,” she whispered, changing the subject like she always did.
It didn’t bother me like it had in the past. I wasn’t sure if it was the setting, or the way her eyes lingered on my face, but the knot in my belly that usually showed up when she shied away from me was absent.
“I’ll carry her in,” I replied, letting the moment pass.
That night I didn’t even mind going to bed alone. The house felt alive for the first time since I’d moved in. As I stripped down and crawled between the sheets, I could hear Morgan singing softly to Etta across the hall.
“Etta, my baby, you’re sleepy and it’s time to rest. Tomorrow you can play all day. Koda is sleeping and Uncle Trevor is sleeping, so sleeping would probably be best.”
I grinned into the darkness.
Chapter 18
Morgan
It’s about time you called me,” I said into the phone as I watched Etta splash in a puddle in Trevor’s backyard. “After leaving like an asshole.”
“I’m sorry,” Miranda replied, sighing in exasperation. “But I didn’t want to get into it with you.”
“You could have at least left a note.”
“Well, yeah,” she grumbled. “But I didn’t think about it.”
“Too busy sneaking out with all of your earthly possessions?” I asked.
“I only took a backpack,” she replied drily. “The rest of it is stored in Dad’s garage.”
“I looked!”
“I put it with the Christmas shit so you wouldn’t go snooping for clues.”
“I’ve seen everything you own,” I shot back. “And I wouldn’t have snooped.”
“You totally would have,” she argued, chuckling a little. “I just needed to get out of that house, you know?”
“Yeah, I get it,” I replied. I’d given it a lot of thought on the long drive north, and I couldn’t really blame my sister for wanting to escape. But the way she’d gone about it still annoyed me. “You had to go with Frances, though?”
“You’re the only person he lets get away with that shit,” she mumbled back. “You know that, right?”
“Yeah, yeah,” I said, rolling my eyes. “He loves me, blah blah.”
“He’s not quite the monster you make him out to be.”
“I don’t think he’s a monster,” I snapped. Etta glanced at me, and I smiled through gritted teeth to reassure her. “I just don’t think he’s good enough for you.”
“Yeah, well, you’ll just have to deal,” she replied.
“Tell me you’re joking.” The silence on the other end of the line gave me my answer. “I hope you know what you’re doing.”
“I can handle it,” she said finally. “Besides, you have no room to talk.”
“What does that mean?”
“Where are you right now?” she asked, chuckling. “Let me guess. Somewhere in the wilds of Oregon?”
“You called Dad first?” I asked indignantly.
“I knew I’d get a better reception,” she replied.
“Oh, I bet. He lets you get away with anything.”
“And he’s so different with you?”
I shrugged, even though she couldn’t see me.
“So, you’re at Trevor’s,” she said, humming. “How’s that going?”